Monday, December 19, 2011

My Favourite Day...

At the same time that our wedding feels like a lifetime ago, I still can't believe that it was over two months ago now. Having finally had time to process the craziness of the weeks leading up to the big day, the amazingness of our honeymoon, and how quickly life returns to normal afterwards (although so much better, because now we are married), I thought I would share a little more of the details that made up our special day. I have already shared what I wore, so now I will focus on the rest...

We were married at St. Joseph's Church in Port Melbourne, a gorgeous little bluestone church. The ceremony and particularly reciting our vows to each other, was my favourite part of the day. It was such an intimate and personal moment, almost like it was just the two of us. In that moment I was feeling so many emotions but above all of them I was just so happy. My one last minute addition was to have a Violinist and Cellist play throughout the ceremony, and even though I heard nothing because I was so focused on the job at hand, I was told that it set the mood perfectly, just the effect I was after.

The weather was something that I had prepared for all possibilities, especially considering that Melbourne's weather can be unreliable at the best of times. The weather held out for us though, it rained on my way to the church and during the ceremony only, which they say is a sign that you will have blessings "showered" upon your marriage. I'll take it. The rest of the day was fine and mild, and the sun even came out.

Our reception was held at the beautiful Port Melbourne Yacht Club, overlooking Port Phillip Bay. We arrived just as the sun was setting over the water and the Spirit of Tasmania had departed from the nearby Station Pier.AsMichael and I share a love for food, it went without saying that one of the most important decisions for our wedding day would be the food. That is part of the reason why we chose the venue, because we knew we could rely on Peter Rowland's culinary delights. Considering we planned everything from New York and weren't going to be able to try the food before the day, we decided it was best to go with a trusted and reputable source. We are so glad we did, the food and drinks were a highlight.

Our cake was both stunning and delicious and was made lovingly my my amazing brother Ben. After several trial cakes, over many months, our cake was perfection and I could not have been happier with it. Ben has said that it was his first and last wedding cake, due to the work involved. I am so grateful for the effort that was put in and for the amazing end result. I ordered the fondant hydrangea petals from Modern Luxe Events on Etsy. They are based in Los Angles in the United States, but were more than happy to ship to me in Australia.

As for everything else I knew I wanted lots of flowers so that is what inspired everything from the invitations, to the centerpieces and even the cake. Flowers were something that I was very particular about, which was quite a feat given that I planned the entire wedding from New York. I was very disappointed to learn that our wedding was going to be too early in the season for hydrangeas, my favourite flower. Then in the week leading up to our wedding my florist contacted me to say that there was a freak early crop of the beautiful blooms and I could not only have them in my bouquet but also in the centrepieces. I also wanted to tie in the venue so I added a touch of navy and cream in a nod to nautical. We went with cream with a touch of green for the flowers so everything tied in beautifully. I absolutely loved the results.

I had DIY-ed as much of the wedding as possible, to save on costs. I designed and printed all of our invitations, save the dates, guest cards, envelopes etc. My mum sewed all of the favour bags, which we filled with tea and chocolates for our quests to enjoy when they got home. I didn't worry about flowers in the church as I knew that our wedding was the last of about four weddings in the church that day and more flowers would either look overcrowded or just unnecessary, and I don't regret that decision, the Church looked better kept simple.

It was honestly the best day, and so much better than either of us could of imagined. It was filled with so much love and joy, and we were so happy to share it with so many of our friends and family. The day went off without a hitch - and if there was one, I certainly didn't notice.

About Me

I am an Australian, living in New York and enjoying all the adventures that life brings. I love fashion, food, home interiors and many things in between. This blog is a chance to share some of these loves as well as my experiences living in the Big Apple with my husband and baby.